Is there an app for that?

This news article was published under
the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Have you used a mobile phone app to keep fit, find a hospital or help manage an illness? Or do you have an idea for an app that could help you? You can now recommend your favourite health apps, and suggest ideas for new ones, on the Department's website.

Secretary of State Andrew Lansley visited Evelina Children’s Hospital in London today, where launched a call for ideas, to support the use of existing mobile phone apps and health information maps, as well as encourage people to put forward ideas for new ones.

We want to hear from anyone with an interest, whether you’re a patient, doctor, nurse or an app developer.

At the end of September a panel of judges will choose their favourite apps and ideas from the most popular entries. The judges include Professor Sir Bruce Keogh, Julie Meyer, CEO Ariadne Capital and a ‘dragon’ for the BBC’s online Dragon’s Den, Jenny Ritchie-Campbell, Director for Innovation at Macmillan Cancer Support and Dr Shaibal Roy. You can read more about the judges here.

Andrew Lansley, Secretary of State for Health, said:
“We want to give people better access to information that will put them in control of their health and help make informed choices about their healthcare.
“Over the next six weeks, we want to hear from patients, health professionals and budding app developers on their ideal new app. This is a unique opportunity for the NHS and those who develop apps to not only showcase their work but bring to life new ideas and realise true innovation in healthcare.”

Dr Shaibal Roy, NHS Future Forum:
“I’m proud to be part of this call for ideas from patients, their families, the public and frontline health care professionals. Useful and easy to use smartphone apps and information maps will surely support both patients and clinicians in their shared decisions to improve outcomes. This is an open invitation to tell us about apps and maps already in use, and new apps and maps that are needed. The outcomes will be transparently shared.
“I hope this work will help the NHS understand completely new ways to help improve outcomes for individuals and their families. There are inspiring apps and incredible ideas that have never before been gathered and shared nationally. We hope to accomplish this quickly, and in doing so, build a community of champions to explore this particular view of the future.”